What Kate Wrote
by aethre
Summary: What Kate wrote... and what Rick read. A spiritual sequel, of sorts, to Fangirl. Heat/Rook... and Castle/Beckett by extension.


_**What Kate Wrote**_  
**Author: **Nikki/aethre  
**Category: **Romance with a touch of pwp  
**Rating: **R  
**Summary: **What Kate wrote... and what Rick read. A spiritual sequel, of sorts, to Fangirl. [Heat/Rook... and Castle/Beckett by extension]  
**A/N: **While technically a sequel (interquel?) to a previous fic I wrote, it's not necessary to read it first. Either order, or just reading one or the other, will be perfectly fine.

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**Title: **Tequila Sunrise  
**Author: **CrumblingSpire  
**Fandom: **Heat novels  
**Category: **Romance**  
Pairing: **Heat/Rook  
**Rating: **R  
**Summary: **Heat, Rook, a boring cocktail party and a convenient coat closet.  
**Author's Note: **Written at two am with a glass (or three) of wine. You've been warned.

Nikki Heat smirked inwardly as she swept, fashionably late, into Rook's magazine's cocktail party. The formfitting wine red dress, accented in gold, drew looks and the lithe, athletic form it cased kept the gazes on Nikki. Despite all of the admiring stares, Nikki felt Rook's eyes on her and she turned to face him with a saucy smile. Rook's Adam's apple bobbed and he absently set his champagne glass on a nearby table. The air between the two smouldered and the other partygoers unconsciously cleared a direct route to Nikki for Rook.

They stood facing each other, standing just a bit closer than polite society demands, and the tension crackled in the slight space between them.

Rook gave Nikki an appreciative once over (lingering on her cleavage, Nikki noted. Not that she minded – if she hadn't wanted him to get a good look, she would have worn a dress with a higher neckline) with a slightly lecherous smirk. "You clean up well, Detective."

Nikki gave Rook a once over of her own. "And you need to shave, Rook."

Rook ran his hand across his jaw. "You think, Detective?" He took half a step closer and pulled Nikki into his arms. "Shall we dance?"

Nikki stepped out of his arms with a slight shove to Rook's chest. "We're in the entryway, Rook. And nobody is dancing."

Undaunted, Rook placed Nikki's arm through his. "Then shall we relocate to the dance floor?"

Nikki rolled her eyes, "We're at a cocktail party. I want a cocktail."

"The bar it is!" Rook swept Nikki off without a pause. At the open bar, Rook was able to cut through the crowd with a smile and handful of humorous quips. There was something to be said about being on the arm of a man who won two Pulitzers. "Bubblies for me, sir, and the lady will have...?"

"A tequila sunrise."

The bartender smiled and his eyes lingered a tad too long on Nikki's cleavage. Both Nikki and Rook frowned in response and Rook edged possessively closer to the detective. Nikki's frown deepened as she realised that, while she had no problem with Rook getting an eyeful, she genuinely didn't like the idea of the bartender getting a good look as well. Odd; she never had felt that way before – even when she'd tell men to keep their eyes up she'd be inwardly preening. And Rook's possessiveness. Normally a move like that would guarantee a stiletto digging in the unfortunate man's foot but Nikki felt herself almost leaning into his warmth.

Odd.

Fortunately, the bartender was quick with their drinks and Nikki didn't have to contemplate her unexpected personality change as Rook had swept her off again. Nikki didn't mind that so much as Rook was making a direct line towards Roach – precisely the same direction she would have gone.

Conversation was brief, though, as both Raley and Ochoa were clearly more interested in the women and all four were aware that there was a small chance of any approaching for them with Nikki and Rook around. Nikki may have been the boss and she may have been standing too close to Rook, but she was a beautiful woman that shared an obvious bond with the other two detectives. And Rook? Rook, intentionally or not, always stole the spotlight.

So Rook and Nikki drifted from group to group, rarely straying more than an arm's length from each other, but generally standing just slightly too close together. Another flute of champagne and a tequila sunrise passed and the time spent making small talk decreased as the tension and lust rose between Heat and Rook – the other partygoers were quick to excuse themselves from the uncomfortably exclusive atmosphere Nikki and Rook generated.

In a quiet moment amongst the boisterous chaos of a slightly drunk crowd of writers, editors, publishers, various other hanger-ons and their dates, Rook plucked Nikki's nearly empty glass from her hand and set it on a nearby ledge.

"May I now have a dance?" Rook smiled, slightly hazily. Nikki gave a languid smile back and swiped her glass off the ledge. She downed the fiery remnants of drink and stepped closer to Rook.

"You may now," Nikki said with a slight purr in her voice, "But no one else is dancing."

Rook gave her a huge, boyish grin. "Does it matter?" He asked, leading Nikki to an open spot perfect for dancing. He pulled her into his arms and Nikki relaxed into him with a smile.

"I suppose not," she admitted as they began to move softly to the music.

"So how shall we dance? A waltz?" Rook asked, leading them into a few steps of the waltz, "Or a foxtrot?" He abruptly switched dances and Nikki moved with him fluidly. "Or perhaps a tango?" Rook spun Nikki out and reeled her back in with a flourish. Nikki's breath caught and her heart raced as Rook's thigh slid between her own. "I know!" Rook exclaimed and drew back a bit from Nikki. "The jitterbug!" Rook switched perfectly into the dance and pulled a laughing Nikki along with him. God it was fantastic – the band, noticing the dancing couple, also switched smoothly into a song perfect for the jitterbug – and Nikki had never laughed this hard whilst dancing and she had certainly never felt the room melt away to leave just her and her partner behind. Dancing for fun and not a precursor to sex was something she hadn't done for a long time.

A few brave couples ended up joining in on Nikki and Rook's dance, including Ochoa and a lady he had skilfully charmed, and the band playing a more modern song next caused more people to join the impromptu dance floor.

"Well look at that," Rook said with a smile as he pulled Nikki close to him, "We're trendsetters." They started dancing again, too close together to fit a sheet of paper through, and Nikki knew that this dance was a precursor to sex. But then Rook gave her a playful smile and a devilish wink and she realised that, with Rook, the jitterbug was as well.

The blood flowed headily throughout Nikki's body as she swayed provocatively with Rook. They lasted another dance, almost two, before Rook's hand slid down to cup her nicely shaped (and firmly toned) ass and squeezed gently. Nikki gasped and her back arched slightly, pushing her breasts into Rook's chest and he smiled down at her, eyes dark with lust. As Nikki smiled back up at him, she realised that she didn't want to wait until they got to her apartment – she didn't even want to wait until they got into a cab. Her eyes took on a smoky darkness as she tugged Rook gently through the crowd.

They stumbled into a secluded corner and crashed together, lips moving fiercely and panting wetly between frantic kisses. Rook's hands were lifting up her dress and Nikki was making a mess out of his tie when she finally managed to pull back long enough to gasp a single word.

"Where?" She asked, diving right back into their kiss. Rook groaned and pulled back unwillingly.

"I know where a secondary coat closet is," Rook mumbled between kisses. "It won't be in use – there aren't enough people here tonight."

"Great," Nikki had finally managed to remove his tie and, at loss of where to put it, she shoved it in his jacket pocket, "Lead us there."

Rook led Nikki stealthily, or as stealthily as they could manage (which wasn't very – their disappearance and brief, dishevelled reappearance had attracted the attention of Raley, who wasn't having as much luck with the ladies as either of his friends), and, laughing (Nikki refused to admit that she, quite possibly, was giggling), lurched into the fortunately unlocked, and unused, coat closet.

Unable to think of a way to keep the door closed, Rook pushed Nikki up against it and she pulled him forcibly down for another kiss. Nikki's hands made quick work of the buttons on his shirt, this time not daring to rip them off since they still had to leave the building with some semblance of normality, and she ran her hands appreciatively over Rook's nicely defined chest. Rook moaned and nipped sharply at Nikki's neck as she brushed her thumb over one of his flat nipples. Her hands trailed down his chest and her nails scratched at his stomach before undoing his fly and starting to push down his pants.

Rook gripped Nikki's hips with both hands and hoisted her up against the door. She swiftly wrapped her legs around Rook's waist and gasped though when Rook pushed down her (thankfully braless) dress and closed a hot mouth over her nipple.

"God, Rook!" She gasped and she felt Rook's mouth curve into a smug smile against her breast. Nikki feverishly attempted to push his boxers down with her feet and, with little success, gripped the back of Rook's jacket tightly. Rook pushed Nikki's dress up and his eyes widened when he unexpectedly didn't come across something.

Nikki smirked slyly, "One can't have panty lines in a dress like this."

"Oh God," Rook said and pulled her in for a searing kiss.

Nikki pulled back desperately, "Do you-"

"Jacket pocket. The one without the tie." Despite their best efforts, and they did almost manage to at least remove his boxers, rolling the condom on was a task not suited for either of their current manual dexterity and Nikki was forced to drop to the floor as Rook hurriedly put it on. Nikki was soon pushed up against the door with Rook pushing into her and both let out a sigh of sheer bliss.

Rook paused for a moment and smiled at Nikki, gently, almost chastely, kissing her. After that kiss, it was fast and hot and explosive and everything that Nikki needed right then and it was a moment so close to perfect and she felt hot tears building in her eyes. And Rook collapsed against her, burying his face between her shoulder and her neck and she heard her feet hit the floor but didn't feel it, still too wrapped up in the man whose hair she was running through her fingers.

"Wow," Rook finally said, mumbling into her shoulder. He placed a gentle kiss there and pulled back to see Nikki's face.

"Yeah," Nikki agreed. "Wow."

"Do you want to go back to my apartment?" Rook asked after a long pause.

"Right now?" Nikki asked.

"Yeah," Rook said.

"Okay," Nikki agreed, pulling her dress reasonably into order. She helped Rook do up the buttons on his shirt, stealing gentle kisses as she did up each one. They both attempted to smooth down each other's hair but chalking it up as an impossible task.

"We'll just have to sneak out then," Rook said, "And hope that nobody notices us." Nikki slowly opened the door and glanced into the hallway.

"Clear," she murmured and Rook laughed. "What?"

"Always a cop, aren't you, Detective?" Nikki swatted him playfully and Rook retaliated by pulling her flush to his side. The two ambled along, Nikki cuddled up against his side, wrapped up in each other and forgetting to make a quick escape. They rounded a corner and spotted a side door, and they smiled, thinking that they were home free.

No such luck.

"Well, well, well," Raley's voice drifted down the hall and the two whipped around to see him, and Ochoa (who had evidently decided that watching his boss sneak out of a party far more entertaining than the woman he was dancing with), walking their way towards Nikki and Rook.

"Leaving without saying goodbye," Ochoa placed a hand melodramatically over his heart. "I'm wounded, guys."

"I'm sure you'll get over it," Nikki said, her sharp tone unwillingly softened by the blush staining her cheeks.

"And we are saying goodbye now," Rook said, tightening his arm around Nikki's waist and turning them around.

"You two have a good night," Raley called to their backs.

"Don't stay up too late – tomorrow's a Wednesday!" Ochoa added.

"No, no, please do – I'd like to have a morning off," Roach grinned as their boss, not turning around, flipped them the bird whilst exiting the building.

"C'mon," Raley said to Ochoa, "Let's get back to the party – now that Rook is gone, there'll be more women out there for us."

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**A/N: **I thought it couldn't get stranger than writing fanfic about a character who shares a name with you.

I was wrong.

Writing smutfic about a character who shares a name with you is _way_ weirder.

Coincidently enough, this was written, primarily, between the hours of one and three am on Sunday night.

Thanks is owed, as always, to Sarah (ObsidianJade) who was quick to point out some rather... anatomically difficult tasks I had assigned Nikki and Rook as well as assuring me that I totally didn't completely fail at my latest writing venture. Sometimes even this arrogant scientist needs reassuring.


End file.
